Japan : fictionality, transmedia national branding and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Hernandez Perez, M http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781315188478-11 Title Japan : fictionality, transmedia national branding and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Authors Hernandez Perez, M Type Book Section URL This version is available at: http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/60733/ Published Date 2018 USIR is a digital collection of the research output of the University of Salford. Where copyright permits, full text material held in the repository is made freely available online and can be read, downloaded and copied for non-commercial private study or research purposes. Please check the manuscript for any further copyright restrictions. For more information, including our policy and submission procedure, please contact the Repository Team at: [email protected]. “Manifestations and roles of transmedia in Japan Society and the construction of its image overseas: Fictionality in the Era of convergence” Dr Manuel Hernandez-Perez University of Hull (UK), School of Arts 1. Fictionality, producers and consumers in the paradigm of Convergence The term ‘Culture of Convergence’ (Jenkins, 2006) is still one of the most influential characterizations of Cultural Studies and Communication Studies nowadays. As it has been commented through this volume, the concept defines a global phenomenon that includes other technological, sociological and communicative aspects. Among other consequences, Jenkins points to the discursive fragmentation, a global trend towards content-recycling, and the participation of active (digital) audiences (ibid.). While certainly implicit, others have preferred to emphasise this sociological aspect of the audiences’ empowerment. 'Digital storytelling', for example, would be the product of an audience that not only can but feels the need of telling more through their own stories (Couldry, 2008). These two aspects of transmedia communication, the multiplication of formats and products, and the multiplication of increasingly individual and subjective voices, have aroused interest in the theorizing of the fictional aspects of transmedia. Fictionality can be considered a transmedia feature through the definition of representational shared and persistent values of their concepts (Zipfel, 2014). But, while 'Storytelling' etymologically address to the narrative features of the communication but, as this project is intended to show, Transmedia is not necessarily linked to fictional narrations. However, the transmedia phenomenon can be studied from narrative theory. In the field of journalism, for example, it is common to find the distinction between cross- media (which many understand as multiplatform adaptation) and transmedia (a scattered narrative) (Veglis, 2012). While it is clear that we do not refer to genres or fictional contexts (journalism at least tries to tell the truth), there should be still room for the introduction of fictional elements. Thus, Fictionality can be understood as either a quality or a mode (fictive discourse) to which we have access through cognition. Audiences know that a text or part of a text is not real but this is accepted as a way of establishing an argument or as a pleasure. In this model of rhetorical and cognitive inspiration, fictionality has been described as a universal quality, defined as ‘intentional use of invented stories and scenarios’ (Nielsen et al., 2015). However, if a fictional model serves the purpose of a transmedia narrative, this one needs to be understood through a communication scheme. As has been suggested, fictionality “resides in a way of using a language, and its distinctiveness consists in the recognisably distinct rhetorical set invoked by that use” (Walsh, 2007). Here a reasonable doubt arises because, as any theory of communication explains, there can be a difference between what is intentional and what is finally recognised. There is, therefore, the need to discern whether they are both treated as necessary. Can it be considered fictional those narratives that audiences take by non-fictional? Imagine the extreme case of mock-documentaries. Perhaps, if the definition of ‘genre’ depends on the dialogue with the audience, a definition of fictionality based on the genre can be inclusive, creating products that are both fictional and non-fictional at 1 the same time. On the other hand, the requirement of intentionality closes the possibility that narrative is an involuntary act, naturally associated with cognition. However, there is evidence that would support this thesis. Finally, there are also certain formal implications associated with text derived from this distinction between the 'sign' and the 'recognisable' that can help revive the issue of the fictional genre. That is, fictional texts should be recognisable by their form and content. Institutional communication and its dialogue with the media are a good example of how fictionality cant be isolateds from transmedia communication. This hybridization is even more tangible in those contexts where Popular Culture plays a more relevant role. This can be explained in different ways. It is possible that the most active media users are young people and that Popular Culture is a substantial part of their consumption and production. On the other hand, the most consumed and shared transmedia stories in the world belong to fictional narratives, with a high prevalence of fantasy worlds and science fiction. It is the fictional stories that inspire greater participation and contribute to the creation of texts in specialized (fandom) and general communities. It is my goal in this work to link with narrative theory as the main axis for a communicational and rhetorical study for what I choose Japanese Institutional Communication as a main example. First, I will explore the main Japanese communication agents and the current state of the convergence process, taking into account technological and sociological aspects. Secondly, will summarise from a historical perspective, the main elements of the media industries in relation to the fictionality and their convergence with media ecosystems and institutional communication. Finally, I will examine these issues through a relevant case study: the reformulations of national Branding aligned to the Cool Japan (Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games). While it is more a prior exploration than a refutable research, I will maintain a weak version of my hypothesis: that it is almost impossible to build messages that do not replicate or reference elements from other communication structures including fictional narratives. 2. Japanese Media Ecosystem Following the global trend, there have been attempts by the Japanese government since the beginning of the century to foster technological convergence and stimulate creative industries. In the case of Japan, the rapid onset of new technologies (particularly the internet and mobile technologies) is the result of an 'interventionist' policy and has been defined in terms of ‘integration’ and ‘digitalization’ (Menon, 2006). The term integration refers to how the media can share the same technology infrastructure. For example, mobile, internet and television can now be offered by the same provider through high-speed internet connections. On the other hand, the digitalization is more oriented to the treatment of contents, and its transformation into digital formats. Political and historical factors have contributed to a map of platforms and transmedia agents, although in a different way from other countries with the equal level of development: Television and Video Streaming 2 Despite the progress of social media and internet, 51% of Japanese still go to television on a daily basis to get informed, a situation that may change in a very close future (Reuters Institute, 2016b). In relation to the consumption of entertainment products, the main media are YouTube and Japanese distributor NicoNico Video. Video streaming has been over the years much more popular for both the consumption of news and the consumption of entertainment products. Of great importance are the multi-platform tools of media groups (Newspapers) such as NHK or Tokyo TV. Actually, reports indicate that watching the news on the online site (39%) is more frequent than trough Social Networks (15%) (Reuters Institute, 2016b). In October 2014, the merging of Kadokawa with Dwango, founder of NicoNico, was completed. Everything points to a shift towards the convergence of multimedia platforms, due to the relevance of Kadokawa, largest Publisher in Japan, as a content generator. NicoNico's video interfaces are radically different from other multimedia content providers because they include comments and cross-platforms links (Steinberg, IN PRESS/DRAFT). Publishers, Newspapers and Content Aggregators In the Japanese case, the regional press (21%) is used more frequently weekly as a news source, followed by nationals Yomiuri Shimbun (16%), Asashi Shimbun (14%) and lower level Mainichi Shimbun (5% ) And Sankei Shimbun (4%) (Reuters Institute, 2016a). The interest in the local press may be linked to the interest of the Japanese in political participation. The population has been re-politicized at the local level in response to the disapproval of national policy, accommodating to institutional decentralisation (Foljanty-Jost and Schmidt, 2006). This citizen participation can find in the social media a form of expression if not completely free at least not directly controlled by the government. In that sense, the freedom of the press